Gregg Rosen, McGuireWoods

Rosen began his career by starting an environmental law and natural resources law firm with one of the first environmental lawyers (then known as environmental strike force lawyers) of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources. This early partnership would prove pivotal to Rosen's legal career, as it would lead him to become one of the most influential lawyers in Pennsylvania mining, oil and gas, and natural resources.

Rosen quickly found himself immersed in litigation, regulatory and transactional matters involving coal, which was then most highly regulated energy and natural resources industry in Pennsylvania. He then added oil, natural gas, aggregates and other extractive industries, and waste disposal to his arsenal of knowledge. 

He worked on numerous landmark Pennsylvania cases, a list that includes decisions regarding mineral leases (Olbum v. Old Home Manor and Williams v. Vesely) and officer, director and shareholder liability for corporate environmental violations (Kaites v. Commonwealth and W.C. Leasure v. Commonwealth).

He has served on various state advisory committees, including the Pennsylvania Ad Hoc Task Force on Mining Legislation and the Pennsylvania Environmental Hearing Board Rules Committee.

The legal profession is constantly evolving and that evolution only seems to have accelerated in recent years. What's the biggest change you've seen in the profession during your career?

Although many new concepts and trends have dramatically affected the legal profession during the past 40 years, the advent of technology and related information management stand out. Communication with clients, colleagues and opposing counsel now occurs in real time 24 hours per day, seven days per week. Lawyer down time and personal time have been curtailed as a result. Drafting and editing documents has been eased such that the length and number of documents per transaction both have increased dramatically (although the explosion of laws and regulation are contributing factors). Document archiving, retrieval and management have complicated litigation enormously.

I would be remiss in not mentioning the fulsome embrace by the legal profession of diversity in the work force, something which I find most gratifying and which makes me very proud. Our profession has benefited greatly from this phenomenon.

What is one thing about the profession that has remained unchanged over the years?

The twin pillars of collegiality and professional courtesy have been constants. These traits make practicing law enjoyable, but one constantly needs to work on them. We should never become self-satisfied with our level of collegiality and professional courtesy. There usually is room for improvement.

Name one thing you've learned over the course of your career that you wish you knew as a young lawyer.

Age and experience are irreplaceable. When I was a young lawyer, I felt my energy and enthusiasm would compensate for my lack of experience. As I matured as a professional, I came to believe that there is no substitute for experience. Because most good lawyers are autodidactic, we continue to improve as professionals as we age and broaden our experience.